Needles and Lovers
by Yakushi-Hime
Summary: When Shizune was assigned to be his doctor-meets-prison warden, she never would have guessed that she'd end up caring what happened to him. Sorta KabuShizu because it needs more lovin'. AU-ish for diverting from the manga. Not fluff. At all. Review!
1. Burning Down Neverland

**A/N: **I know, I know... I'm sorry. I shouldn't be starting new fics left and right... But I just really couldn't resist this time. D: There's a severe shortage of decent KabuShizu fics out there (or KabuShizu fics PERIOD), and...the inspiration wouldn't leave. Still, I hope someone can enjoy this anyway... It's my first time writing with Shizune, and so far I'm loving her. xD So far this fic has been awesome to write...and I actually have, like, a sort-of-kind-of plotline! D: Le gasp le gasp! But we'll see how it goes.

Please review, if you have the time! I need some good feedback; I know my writing is rusty, but I need some suggestions as to where to improve. C: Thanks!

**EDIT (05/28/09): **Updated the first chapter to suit the new direction of this story~ Not much changed, pretty much just the descriptions of Kabuto's wounds. (I've decided to include the "Kabuchimaru" issue, haha.) Please enjoy. C:

* * *

"Man…I hate hospitals." Shizune reached up to tuck a strand of dark hair behind her ear, then flipped open the folder for the patient she was about to examine. The pretty young woman was dressed in an ankle-length, kimono-like dress that was a deep shade of blue, with cream trim around the edges. The outfit was plain and unremarkable, but even so it could not completely mask the beauty of her lithe, dangerous body. Currently, she also wore a stiff white doctor's coat, her name typed out uniformly on the nametag riding over her heart.

As she stalked down the cold and, to her eyes, miserable halls of Konoha General Hospital, the talented kunoichi glanced up from the manila folder in her slim, deadly hands and narrowed her midnight eyes scornfully. She was a medical specialist, trained in the art of healing (and killing) and herbs (and poisons) and the human body (and how to turn it against its owner). She was not, however, fond of hospitals. Shizune was a compassionate person - she longed to help people in pain, and she was talented enough that more often than not she could act on that impulse. So the sheer amount of sick and hurting people was not the root of her distaste for such establishments. Or…perhaps it was. Surrounded by people who needed her, perhaps she felt smothered by the desire to help, when she simply couldn't heal at everyone at once.

She always _had_ thought hospitals felt oppressive.

Whatever the reason, the fact remained that she was less than happy to be treading Konoha General's slick tile floor that fine Sunday evening. She already logged more hours in the hospital than was required. The medic was just trying to do her part in the recovery of the village, setting aside her scorn of hospitals and picking up this doctor's uniform in its place. After the recent attack that Konohagakure had undergone from the combined powers of Suna and Oto, shinobi and civilians alike were left injured and ill; even now, months afterwards, the effects could still be seen. However, this particular day was supposed to be the reliable kunoichi's first day free from work in several weeks. (An outbreak of pneumonia had left the hospital staff busier than ever.) Just when it seemed she might get some time to herself, to relax and enjoy a day outdoors, or indoors, or wherever-the-heck-she-wanted, she'd been rudely interrupted by the knocking of a Chuunin messenger at her door.

Her services were urgently required at the hospital.

The details had been scanty at best, but apparently an enemy ninja had been captured, injured - probably fairly critically, if she was being summoned at a time like this. Tsunade-sama had been more than supportive (some might say insistent) of her apprentice's request for a day off, so it must be truly important if the Godaime Hokage would interrupt her friend and student's precious downtime for it.

Or it had better darn well be, anyway.

Upon arriving at the hospital, she'd picked up her prisoner-turned-patient's folder and skimmed over it. There was no name attached to it, but that wasn't too unusual. Information about prisoners was often closely guarded. The prisoner was a young male, estimated early- to mid-twenties. Height 175.2 centimeters, weight 65 kg. Pretty average statistics. She turned a page as she turned a corner, and skipped down to the description of his wounds. That's where things got messy. Some sort of lightning-based jutsu had caused severe damage to his right leg, and there was some barely-healed damage in his abdomen that would need attention. He was apparently recovering from the removal of some foreign tissue from the left side of his body (mostly his arm and up his neck to his face), but the really worrying thing was that his body seemed to be fighting off some sort of unidentifiable poison. The shinobi team that captured him hadn't reported any use of poison in their attacks, so it would take time to identify the substance and create an antidote - which was, undoubtedly, why she'd been summoned. She specialized in poisons, and probably stood a better chance of recognizing the poison by the symptoms than any other available medic, except perhaps Tsunade-sama.

But even the great Tsunade didn't know _everything_.

Shizune sighed, skimming through the rest of the folder's contents as she approached her destination.

Sometimes being the best was more of a pain than it was worth.

--

Some time later – Shizune stopped keeping track after the two hour mark – the medic-nin emerged from the room, her posture weary and a tired sigh escaping her lips. Her chakra was dangerously low; she certainly wouldn't be healing anyone else for at least a couple of days. Rubbing at her temple, she closed her eyes and leaned against the wall next to the door. She had a massive headache, and she was bloody irritated to boot.

Him… Why did it have to be him? Why did she have to save _his_ pathetic life, of all people…?

"Shizune…how is he?"

Shizune glanced up at the familiar voice, squinting as she tried to focus on the figure of her sensei. Chakra depletion symptoms were such a pain…

Tsunade frowned and revised her statement. "Rather, how are you?"

"Ngh." Shizune shook her head slowly, eyes closed. Tsunade nodded sympathetically. She recognized the symptoms from experience. The Sannin placed a gentle hand on her student's shoulder as she passed. "Go rest for now. I'll keep an eye on things, and call you when you're needed." Tsunade gave a tired smile, her own face displaying weariness and fatigue, leading Shizune to believe that her mentor had been well-occupied with her own problems while she'd been healing that monster.

The powerful kunoichi slipped into the room behind her student, leaving Shizune to her own thoughts and worries. She trekked a little down the brightly-lit hall, then collapsed onto a conveniently-placed bench with a heavy release of breath.

She hated jobs like this – healing prisoners and enemy shinobi. She recognized the need for it, of course. A live, captured enemy was much more useful than a dead one, for several reasons. They could be tortured for information, traded for prisoners the enemy had taken, or even executed as an object lesson of sorts. (Although it was rare for merciful Konoha to pursue this last course, it was not unheard of; there were certain ruthlessly patriotic elements in the Council of Elders that would most likely insist upon it.) Indeed, it was a brilliant stroke of luck that the Leaf team that had fought him had managed to take this particular prisoner alive.

Still, Shizune hated having the duty of pouring effort and chakra into an enemy soldier who was responsible – directly or not – for the deaths of so many of her Leaf comrades. It felt morally wrong, no matter what her sense of logic told her to the contrary.

And of course it had _nothing_ to do with her own personal desire for vengeance on this man.

Nothing at all.

After all, why should she resent the ninja who took her out of a battle without so much as batting an eyelash and proceeded to coldly and quite literally kick her mentor and hero while she was down?

_Nope. Nothing personal at all, Yakushi-san._

--

Tsunade stood beside the unconscious figure that rested on the bed, her fingers hovering over his chest and her chakra probing into his body. Shizune had done an excellent job. The poison that no one had seemed to recognize had been successfully identified and counteracted, and the damage to his leg was largely healed. Despite the bandages covering his left side, the operation to remove Orochimaru's invasive flesh had been a success. Although not without a certain level of discomfort, Yakushi-san would live to see another day – which would certainly not please him once he found out. Not only would he be faced with certain interrogation, probable torture, and possible death – unless he surprised everyone and proved cooperative – but he would also face the painful challenge of recovering from his injuries.

Yes, Shizune had done an excellent job. Tsunade herself likely couldn't have done better.

But there were some wounds that just couldn't be healed instantly.

The Sannin's eyes wandered to the enemy nin's heavily-bandaged leg.

Yakushi Kabuto would not be running home - wherever home _was_ for the missing-nin - in a hurry.


	2. is this a life left just to remember

Kabuto awoke silently, stirring not a bit. The training ingrained into his subconscious mandated that his eyes remained closed and his heartbeat even until he was certain of his situation and location. Several seconds ticked by in stillness. The fact that he could hear them passing was his first clue that all was not well. He abhorred the sound of a ticking clock and refused to keep any clock that was not digital in any building he frequented. So if he wasn't somewhere he frequented, then where was he? There was something familiar about wherever he was, and as soon as he realized this he knew what it was - that antiseptic smell. The scent was burning slightly at his nostrils but sending a message of comfortable familiarity to his brain. He was in a hospital, then? Or...a lab?

His fingertips twitched very slightly against the sheets.

While he was accustomed to working in labs and was in fact quite comfortable in them, the idea of waking up in _someone else's_ lab was a bit...worrying, to say the least.

Knowing that the involuntary movement of his fingertips would have given his state of consciousness away to any competent shinobi who might be watching, the medic let his breathing pick up and his black eyes slid open. He instantly regretted it, screwing his eyes tightly shut and fighting a groan. _Not...good..._ The brightness of the room resulted in a headache that really shouldn't have been quite so bad under normal conditions. _What did I do last night? Get drunk? That's...I wouldn't have... _His mouth tipped down at the corners as he tried to think. He just...couldn't remember. The young man blinked several times, wincing but forcing his eyes to adjust so he could determine his location as best as possible.

The instant Kabuto could keep his eyes open for a decent period of time before blinking again, three things became apparent.

1) He was not wearing his glasses. Or, at least, so his blurred vision suggested. A slight shift of his head confirmed that his glasses were indeed missing from their familiar perch on his nose.

2) He recognized this room. Glasses or no, one could always recognize certain familiar childhood sights. Either he was caught in a genjutsu that replicated his past or he was in Konoha Hospital's IC unit. He sincerely hoped it was the former, but somehow doubted it.

3) Something was obstructing the view from his left eye. He was more concerned, however, by the anxiety this caused him than by the fact itself. A mild panic swelled up within him, and he fought to retain control. Attempting to lift his left hand to his face to investigate, a pained yelp escaped him and he tensed, his right arm clutching at the sheets that seemed to cover him.

The shinobi closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to placate his body into relaxing, knowing it would hurt less. Instinctively, he began to send soothing chakra into the source of pain - his entire left arm seemed to have angry, miniature wasps buried beneath the skin - and suddenly realized that he had none to give. For whatever reason, he seemed to be near chakra depletion. Definitely not a good sign.

Focusing on his immediate worries, Kabuto felt the pain slowly die down to a low, fiery throb as his body relaxed. Opening his unobstructed eye, he realized his arm was swathed in bandages extending beneath the pale blue cloth of the patient's gown he was wearing. Wanting to sit up so as to better examine himself, but unsure if he could move without another painful experience, he settled for lifting his un-bandaged right arm. It, at least, seemed to be functioning normally. His neck, shoulder, and back muscles were incredibly sore and various scratches covered the pale skin, but there were no apparent large wounds to worry about.

Moving it around experimentally, he began to reach towards his face, hesitating a bit before brushing the bridge of his nose and his cheek. Bandages met his inquisitive fingertips, and dismay deepened his frown as he explored further, following the bandages across his forehead and down his neck and stopping to rest on the edge of the gown.

_This...isn't right... Something's missing. What...what exactly happened?_

Of course, he had already guessed the basics of what had happened from what he'd observed so far. Konoha had captured him, he'd been injured, they'd treated him - or, were still treating him, judging from the state of his body. Still, he seemed to have trouble remembering the events that had led up to his current situation, and he had the distinct feeling that he should be more worried than he was. A wave of exhaustion washed over him, and he brushed the silver bangs back from his bandaged forehead. Surely it would all be revealed in time. Resting the back of his hand on his forehead, he let his eyes slip closed for a moment. _Later. Focus on the current situation for now._

Tsunade chose that moment to enter the room, sweeping in with her powerful presence that was more than just her distinct chakra signature - it was an aura, a _scent,_ almost. Alcohol and herbs and antiseptic and paper and perfume. It was somewhat revolting, really, that mixture of irresponsibility and reliability. But still...it definitely made people sit up and pay attention. She was not a person who would put up with being ignored.

So when the legendary medic addressed the grey-haired renegade in her brusque voice, Kabuto listened (though without opening his eyes or acknowledging her presence).

"Yakushi, you're finally awake. About bloody time." Cursing him under her breath (but loudly enough for him to hear), Tsunade seemed to be flipping through some papers. "Do you know where you are?"

Knowing that not answering would end rather painfully and seeing no way his answer could be used against him, Kabuto opened his eyes - or, well, _eye_ - and briefly replied in a bored tone that insinuated she was wasting his time. "Konoha General Hospital, Konohagakure, Land of Fire."

Ignoring his tone, Tsunade nodded and set the clipboard she'd been holding - his file? - down on the table next to his bed. "Then I'll assume I don't have to tell you that you are currently a prisoner of the Village Hidden in the Leaves." She paused to observe his blank expression. "While normally this would afford you with certain rights, you forfeited those rights when you become a missing-nin and defected to Otogakure." There was a vaguely malicious glint in her eyes as she continued in a mocking tone. "But you're a smart boy, Yakushi. I'm sure you were well aware of _that_."

The woman's insulting tone pricked at Kabuto's pride, but he smothered the urge to respond in kind. Considering how bad his position was to begin with, he'd really rather not further tick off the person with control of his medical care - not to mention his life. He returned her gaze steadily, blinking once, slowly, in a quiet sort of acknowledgement.

Something stirred in Tsunade's brown eyes, but it was gone before Kabuto could place it - and then his attention was effectively diverted by the firm, gentle hands that were suddenly helping him into a sitting position. He gave a muted gasp at the pressure put on his left side, his head was spinning uncontrollably, and, for a moment, he thought he might throw up. As his body began to curl inwards at the pain - his side hurt, his arm hurt, his stomach hurt, and _ohhhh_, his head... - he moved to grasp at his belly, but was stopped by a stern hand gripping his wrist.

"Bad idea, Yakushi." He glanced toward where the older medic-nin was examining the various cuts and abrasions on the arm she'd seized. "You'll reopen your abdomen."

Kabuto blinked, glancing down and exploring the area with what chakra he could afford. (He couldn't use enough to heal, certainly, but examining wouldn't hurt.) His eyes widened at what he discovered. A long scar ran horizontally across his abdomen where a life-threatening wound had obviously been quickly and poorly healed. It wasn't so much shocking that he'd had the wound, but angering that it'd been healed so sketchily. Of course, some would say he _should_ be happy it had been healed at all, but what self-respecting medic would do such a poor job? He fought the urge to sneer, wary of Tsunade's observation. _I mean, honestly, I could've done better as an Academy Stu...dent..._

The medic's inner rant trailed off as bits of memory flowed back.

--

_Rain, darkness. Snakes, blades. Ink. That eye, that mark, that blank face. _

_A spreading fire that inches across my skin. _

_Kunai, jump away, paper bomb, dodge, explosion, shuriken, kawarimi, paper bomb, evade, no explosion, it's a trap. Sharp pain in my stomach, chakra getting low, have to move, have to get away, can't leave, pinned, pain in my back, smile on his lips. _

_Ink, black on black, crawling up my legs and are those scorpions and snakes and is that a hawk pinning his shoulder? Where'd that kid get his sense of humor? Because I do not find this funny and they think they've got him but he heals and he laughs and they can't do a thing to stop him and I should know because I've tried._

_--_

The memories cease suddenly, interrupted by two revelations.

_He_ is the one who healed his abdomen that way.

And _he_ is gone.

Orochimaru...Orochimaru is gone.

Tsunade looks up, and Kabuto doesn't realize he's crying.

**A/N: Bwaha. I know it isn't great, but HEY, just be glad I'm posting again? :P btw, I'm not sure this is actually gonna be a KabuShizu afterall. xD;; It's turning into more of a story about Kabuto's interactions with all of the Konoha folks, as opposed to a romance between he and Shizune. They still might end up "together", in some way, but it's ceasing to be the focus of the story...**

**Anyway, please review! I need some feedback if you want to see more~**


	3. god save the eyes that dim tonight

**A/N: **Wow. Reviews are _really_ good motivators. :'D Thanks for the reviews, guys! As a reward, I give you chapter three! xD It's not much, but I'm trying to move the plot along here, haha...ha. :| This is why I write oneshots. And...I'm really insecure about this one, as far as remaining in-character goes. I mean, Kabuto's usually much snarkier than this. Is it premature of me to have him being this honest this early on? Am I overestimating the effects of exhaustion, physical trauma, and depression? xD;; I get the feeling I am. And I think I made Tsunade too nice... Well, I hope it isn't too bad. Please enjoy this! I would really appreciate any comments you'd like to share with me~ If you want an update, seriously, just review! It's the only reason I updated this time, haha. I'm afraid I'll drop it again if I don't get feedback. //OTL

And I'm still not happy with the last line. D;

Also! (And I'm sorry this is such a long comment, but I have quite a bit to say.) I rewrote the first chapter some time ago and forgot to edit it in, so I'm gonna go update that next~ xD; It's nothing major, I just changed the description of his wounds; I think that's about it. C: Go read it if you wanna, but you'll be fine if you just pretend I was accurate the first time, haha.

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, I give you chapter three~

* * *

_He's..._crying_?_

Now _this_ was interesting.

Tsunade's honey-colored eyes narrowed. "Yakushi?" No response. She let impatience slip into her tone. "_Yakushi._" Still nothing. "...Kabuto."

Finally, something like recognition stirred behind the cold black surface of his visible eye; the captive medic blinked and shifted his good arm, which she let slip from her long, skilled fingers. A confused look slipped over his face for a moment as he observed his newly-healed appendage, then he slowly glanced up to meet her intense, inquisitive gaze. The eyes that met hers were deeply seated in unrest, despite the carefully calm, bland expression their owner had donned. His voice was soft, but still arrogant as ever. "...what?"

Tsunade cocked a brow, absorbing every detail of the rare privilege she'd just experienced. It was not every day that one got to observe a moment of weakness from the infamous Yakushi Kabuto. In fact, it was a little surprising...and disconcerting. She was instantly suspicious, mentally declaring it a desperate attempt to invoke pity. Well! She was _not_ going to fall for his tricks. He might be a talented spy, medic, and shinobi in general; but she'd enough experience in dealing with _snakes _to know not to trust them in any way. The only thing they could be relied on for was betraying, deceiving, and being general _brutes_.

Of course, Kabuto was still waiting for an answer to his question, the Hokage's mental tirade having created a pregnant pause in the tensely sterile room. Tsunade frowned at him. "How much do you...remember?" When he didn't respond immediately, she clarified. "About the fight."

Kabuto's brow tensed slightly, and Tsunade could practically hear him debating how much to reveal. The Godaime sounded more than a little annoyed when she interrupted the enemy ninja's response-preparing process. "Don't bother lying, Yakushi. What could I possibly gain from your answer? I only need to know from a medical standpoint."

Suspicion and irritation were plain in the young captive's frown, but whatever sharp remark he'd been about to make was cut off by a low, pain-laced moan. He flinched ever so slightly, the fingers of his good hand twitching with the desire to seek out the source of his pain and remedy the situation. Tsunade observed this quietly. _The painkillers are wearing off. _She glanced toward the needle lying ready on the bedside table, then back to her patient. _Not yet._

Kabuto's visible eye closed for a moment, then opened to reveal the exhaustion he'd been too proud to show before. When he spoke, his voice was infinitely tired. _At least he's finally being honest about that much._

"...Don't remember much. Hatake was there." He winced, presumably remembering some painful detail, then muttered on. "That kid from before, he was with Naruto, back then - Sai, or whatever you're calling him now. And Mitarashi Anko, the proctor from the chuunin exams." He paused, then continued wearily. "Ambush...? I think it was just inside the border of Fire Country. Didn't really have a chance, not against all three of them. I hadn't unlocked it yet. That power..." Pain was beginning to creep into his voice, making his words slurred and hesitant. "D-don't remember any details...about the..." A pink tongue darted out to moisten dry lips. "...the fight." He clenched his jaw, biting back the urge to groan at the throbbing pain in the left half of his body.

The Sannin-medic nodded to herself as the captive's account ended, satisfied that he was telling the truth - or something close to it. It made sense that he wouldn't remember details, as he'd received a pretty nasty head injury - or maybe he wouldn't have remembered anyway. They didn't yet fully understand the relationship between Orochimaru's spirit and its host body, and they probably wouldn't unless Kabuto could explain it himself. In any case, she'd gotten everything she was going to get out of him for the time being, so she could afford to administer the drugs. Reaching for the needle, she grasped his good arm and began to search for a vein, explaining as she worked, so as to not cause undue stress to his body. "Yakushi. I'm giving you a strong drug to kill the pain for a while. It will make you very drowsy; you're going to fall asleep again, probably for a while. When you wake up, we're going to talk some more. Got it?" He nodded slightly, and she injected the syringe's contents into Kabuto's bloodstream.

It would take a minute for the drug to fully take effect, but as she glanced up, Tsunade could already see her patient's face relaxing, his weary body eagerly falling into the warm, drowsy embrace of the painkiller. His mind would be following shortly; however, in the minute before giving in to the cloudiness of drug-induced rest, intelligent, very conscious eyes caught hers in their dark gaze.

"He's gone, isn't he."

Her only response was to soften her gaze ever so slightly, but she knew he understood by the look on his face before his eyes slipped close and he relaxed into the pillows, overtaken by sleep.

She'd never seen anyone look so hopelessly lost in her life.

Well, maybe that was a lie.

Tsunade began to gather her supplies, addressing the guard before exiting the room.

Dan had left behind one _very_ lost fiancee.


End file.
